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. To all whom t may concern TED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

LYMAN WHITON, OF TROY, NEW YORK.

STAY FOR SUPPORTING THE SPINE 0F THE HUMAN BODY AND KEEPING 'II-IE BODYI ERECT, &;o.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 3,7 95, dated October 12, 1844.

Be it known that I, LYMAN VHrroN, of Troy, in the'county of Rensselaer and State of New York, have invented a new and Improved Method of Supporting the Spine of the Human Body rand Keeping the Body Erect and Chest Open; and I declare the following to be a full and exact description thereof.

By reference to the drawing hereunto annexed, by me subscribed, and described An improvement tokeep erect and support the human body, it will be seen, that I take for said purpose a piece of india rubber, shirred cloth, of suiiicient length to reach from about the center between the shoulders of the person, on a line with the top of the shoulder blade, down tothe bottom of the spine, varying in length to correspond with the length of the back, of the width of about three inches and six inches long in the center part or middle piece marked on the accompanying drawing A and of about double that width at the top and bottom as marked B and C as the top piece and bottom piecewith two braces marked D and E running from the bottom piece, up under the arm about three inches in length and one in breadth, so as to hold down the shoulder strap marked I?. The two top and bottom pieces B and C run and are elast-ic horizontally, while the middle piece marked A runs and is elastic up and down. The whole is supported by two pieces of whale bone marked Gr and H, running nearly the whole length of the supporter.

The middle piece marked A is elastic up and'down on the back; the end pieces marked B and C are elastic horizontally and the lower end C covers the small of the back.

The excellence of the thing described consists in its adaptation to the back, erect or stoo-ping; its elasticity in all its parts so as to Suder the body to bend with ease; its great extension downward so as to support the small of the back and the mode of keeping the `brace from pressing too close up under the arm.

Supporters of the back are now known consisting of a top piece like the one marked B, in some measure, used with a middle piece somewhat like A but elastic only to a trifling degree and that horizontally, but my supporter `fits the whole back and eX- tends much lower than any supporter here tofore.

The upper or top piece I do not claim, nor the middle or center piece, horizontally elastic, nor the brace marked F, but

I do claim- The connecting of said top iece marked B and said strap marked F, with said hori- Zontally elastic bottom piece C and said middle piece A, elastic up and down the back, and said elastic braces, operating as aforesaid, whether the supporter be made of india rubber cloth or any other material.

LYMAN I/VIIITON.

I/Vitnesses:

WM. W. ELLswoRTH, S. F. DIXON. 

